Got it. Just wanted to confirm then with the EX above that there is a proper threaded hole so that your normal plate for whatever rig or tripod can still be attached? Can you get it pretty tight easily with fingers or do you have to "gorilla" it to keep the camera from twisting?

Hi again. So here is the link for the Zacuto below. Does it only offer straight back from LCD when its centered on back of camera, or like the Varivon also can be used and tilted when the LCD is flipped out?

What is the nicer magnification .... 2.5 or 3x? Just a general question between those magnifications with an LCD of the GH3's quality?

If it were equal between near or far sight choice, as I'm sure there's a good diopter on the Zacuto or the Varivon or any other brand, what would be the nicer performance as far as focussing? Is 2.5 enough to really help a lot? Or is 3x needed, or is it maybe too much and annoying with how big the pixels get?? What do you see in other models with focussing and the choice between 2.5 and 3x?

Hey just so no one is silly like me and remembers to check whether or not the offset with the Varavon will work if you have some kind of a rig, at the last second .... don't. With mine it has to be straight back but I really like where that is going to fall for me. It positions nicely right where an ENG camcorder's viewfinder does on a Sony PMW 320. I could not have reached the loupe if it would have been out to the left.

I got my gh3 yesterdaymorning by mail, just before I was off to a wedding so deceided to take it along and have some play with it. Didn't look at the manual, just pushed some buttons and managed to use it for some shots at the venue that will be used in the final edit of the wedding.

The very first impression I got was how small this camera was, like my 550d, I expected something bigger. I also got the 14-42 and the pancake lens with it, very cheap lenzes but they perform remarkably well. I had a laugh when I first held the pancake in my hands because I thought it was a lenscap, also the 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 lens looks like a toy.
Got a kiwi adapter to fit my samyang lenses but the adaper is a piece of junk, there is no thght fit when the lenses are put on, this will be send back.

An annoying thing was that the screen info dissapreared after a few seconds and when I held my hoodloupe against the hinged lcd screen it turned of each time, hopefully that's just a setting. Probably will be getting the varavon loupe as well.

Also the resolution of that lcd screen was not that good, just sufficient to focus as I could see the pixels. My 550d has a much higher rez screen. I did like the auto magnification once you turned the focus ring.

The 2.0 cropfactor, ouch... have been flying the gh3 on my steadicam with my 14mm f2.8 and it was a much narrower fov compared to the 1.5 cropfactor of my 550d, ain't going to cut it for me so I need at least a new 8 to 10 mm lens.

I barely noticed any moire, much less as on my 550d, then the 50p option, mmm, sooo nice to get smooth slowmotion on steadicam shots.

I also have been shooting at 6400 iso and these shots are all usable, there was noise but not big blotchy grain like on the 550d. It also maintained the color much better at these high iso.

And so much more resolution, really sharp images.

First impression is very good, happy I got it , just need to do much more testing to determine the best setting for least noise.

Ergonomically it's a good improvement over the GH2 - but it's basically a stills camera that shoots video. You really need to accessorise to make it work well for video. And that is the DSLR conundrum.

I don't care if it's better than the GH2. What matters to me is an absolute "fit for purpose" perspective.

There is no accessory that stops the GH3 from turning off the overlays after 10 seconds. Ditto that the record button does not start recording when the displays are off. You have to press it a second time. I missed a number of shots because of this. Then there's the inability to shoot stills quickly while using the VF because it mirrors the behavior of the LCD. Each picture taken is displayed in the VF for whatever number of seconds you have setup for Preview on the LCD. It should behave differently than the LCD and let you see what's going on. Then there's the easy to accidently hit "Display" button just trying to hold the camera that causes the LCD to toggle through it's 4 modes one of which is off. Accidently squeeze the camera on that spot while shooting and you are shooting blind.

Also, you can't just glance at the camera and see what settings you are using or what the camera automatics are choosing. Those disappear after 10 seconds and there is no "always on" display like the Canons and Nikons have.

I think there are no "perfect" camera's for that price, I notice that especially the last years more camera's are coming out that are crippled in one way or the other, often mainly to protect sales on higher end models.

Having to work around those issues is something that has become normal when using a dslr, me only interests what image comes out of the camera, if that is good I don't mind to work with limitations, especially when the sales prize of a camera is low.

Noa, you mentioned using a steady for your GH3, do you mind saying what brand and model it is, please? I might get one very soon, still deciding what is best, a steady or a shoulder rig.

Also, do you have any of that respective footage on youtube or vimeo? Just curious to see both the perspective a 14mm lens gives you (want to buy the Panasonic 14mm f/2.5), and to see how well your stabilizer works with the GH3 on it. If I like it I might steal your idea and order one myself :P

Some quick and dirty footage and framegrabs (photos below the video), the steadicam shot was actually not intended, I was trying to get the gh3 balanced on my blackbird steadicam when suddenly something happened and I had to make a choice of shooting handheld with my nex-ea50 or go with the gh3, so I decided to take the risk and shoot with the gh3 and it turned out pretty allright. :) The frame was a bit too low as the couples heads where cut off a bit but taken into consideration the blacbird was not 100% balanced (I was still making some adjustments just before I had to shoot) it's good enough.

The field of view shot you can see below the video a 14mm lens on the nex-ea50 (cropfactor of 1.5) and a handheld shot (a bit croocked but you can clearly see the difference) with the gh3, same lens, same position.

I also included a shot with the steadicam and gh3 mounted on top, I had to go with the smallest wheights and position the vertical rod as high as possible, this is absolutely the lightest setup possible while still being able to balance it.

Here the steadicam shot I did with the 14mm lens from samyang.
password: gh3

Yes, I usually always shoot wide open at the venue. Just before I start to shoot I set my focus distance and try to maintain that distance towards the subject I"m shooting during the shot. I actually don't want a faster lens on the steadicam since you are shooting more or less blind. I do see the frame in my lcd screen but I have no clue if my focus would be off while I"m shooting if I"d use a f1.4 lens wide open. f2.8 is quite forgiving in that respect, then I just crank up the iso to get the best exposure, something I also dial in before I start shooting.

Why do you say you are shooting blind? You have the nice screen on your GH3 that you can look at without even having to extend it out. I know you can't determine if things are in focus 100%, but it does give you a good idea.

Hmmm... considering everything you say, I don't see any reason to buy the much more expensive Olympus 12mm f/2 anymore... the Panasonic 14mm f/2.5 should do the job. Is there any particular reason you chose the blackbird? A friend with much more experience in video recommended I get a Wondlan Ares. But this Blackbird seems to do the job very, very well!

Yes, I meant flying blind in terms of determining focus, I can clearly see what my frame is but I can't judge critical focus from the distance I"m keeping the steadicam in front of me when I"m flying, especially not with a very fast prime, focus distance would be just a few cm and that you can only maintain if you have your eye on a loupe against the viewfinder. Btw, the gh3 lcd screen is not that great, my 550d has a much higher rez screen, it's ok to focus with a loupe but just ok.

A friend with much more experience in video recommended I get a Wondlan Ares. But this Blackbird seems to do the job very, very well!

Don't know that one but I do know I can set up my blackbird in a few minutes between taking it out of it's case, assemble it and having it ready to fly and time can be crucial as well during weddings. There was no particular reason I choose the blackbird but I like using it. I might get the tokina 11-16 f2.8 as 11mm should be roughly the same fov on the gh3 as a 14mm on a 1,5 crop camera.

Better get a glidecam 1000, 2000, a merlin or a blackbird, more expensive but at least the best steadicams in the lower price range, from what I have read the merlin is not so easy to balance so maybe something to take into consideration.

About the Tokina, I really considered it myself, but it's double the price of the Panny 14mm and it's slightly slower, plus you need an adapter, plus it's heavier, plus it's bigger, plus no AF (I also take pics occasionally, when I get bored). I also use AF with the touch AF feature, which I really like on the GH3.